editorNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Steve Inskeep is host of NPR's Morning Edition, the most widely heard radio news program in the United States. He co-hosts the program with Renee Montagne and David Greene.Known for probing questions to everyone from presidents to warlords to musicians, Inskeep has a passion for stories of the less famous—like an American soldier who lost both feet in Afghanistan, or an Ethiopian woman's extraordinary journey to the United States.Since joining Morning Edition in 2004, Inskeep has hosted the program from New Orleans, Detroit, Karachi, Cairo, Houston and Tehran; investigated Iraqi police in Baghdad; and received a 2006 Robert F. Kennedy journalism award for "The Price of African Oil," on conflict in Nigeria. In 2012 he traveled 2,700 miles across North Africa in the wake of the Arab Spring. In 2013 he reported from war-torn Syria, and on Iran's historic election. In 2014 he drove with colleagues 2,428 miles along the entire U.S.-Mexico border; the resulting radio series, "Borderland,"NPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Steve InskeepThu, 08 Dec 2016 09:53:05 +0000Steve Inskeephttp://wrvo.org
Steve InskeepYou can re-enact that scene in the old movie Christmas Vacation.A family goes into a forest and cuts down a ridiculously tall tree.The U.S. Forest Service is selling Christmas tree removal permits for $5 in the Green Mountain National Forest of Vermont.You go into the forest. You cut down the tree yourself. There's only one catch: the tree you choose cannot be more than 20 feet tall. Copyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit INSKEEP, HOST: Good morning, I'm Steve Inskeep with a chance to re-enact that scene in the old movie "Christmas Vacation." A family goes into a forest and picks out a ridiculously tall Christmas tree. The U.S. Forest Service is selling Christmas tree removal permits for $5 in the Green Mountain National Forest of Vermont. You go into the forest, you cut down the tree yourself. And there's only one catch. The tree you choose cannot be more than 20 feet high. RACHEL MARTIN, HOST: Forget it. That's not big enough. INSKEEP: You're listening to MORNING EDITION. TranscriptIn Vermont, You Can Cut Your Own Christmas Treehttp://wrvo.org/post/vermont-you-can-cut-your-own-christmas-tree
96796 as http://wrvo.orgMon, 05 Dec 2016 10:55:00 +0000In Vermont, You Can Cut Your Own Christmas TreeSteve InskeepWhen you walk into the Smithsonian's "Art of the Qur'an" exhibition, you're met with a book that weighs 150 pounds. The tome, which dates back to the late-1500s, has giant pages that are covered in gold and black Arabic script."Somebody spent a lot of time, probably years, to complete this manuscript," says curator Massumeh Farhad. "... The size tells you a great deal about it. I mean, clearly this was not a manuscript that could have been taken out every day for private reading. This was a manuscript that was intended for public display."That manuscript is among more than 50 centuries-old Qurans on display at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery in Washington, D.C. The exhibition isn't about the words of the Quran so much as the people who laboriously copied the book, letter by letter. Some of their names are listed (one manuscript was written by a vizier, or prime minister, of the Ottoman Empire), but most of the creators are unknown.Either way, each of the pages is one of a kind, andQuran Exhibition Shines A Light On The Holy Books' Dedicated Artistshttp://wrvo.org/post/quran-exhibition-shines-light-holy-books-dedicated-artists
96698 as http://wrvo.orgFri, 02 Dec 2016 10:20:00 +0000Quran Exhibition Shines A Light On The Holy Books' Dedicated ArtistsSteve InskeepCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit INSKEEP, HOST: Let's learn some more about people who have been offered posts in the administration of President-elect Donald Trump. Retired Lieutenant General Michael Flynn is Trump's choice for national security adviser, we have confirmed. Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions is the choice for attorney general of the United States and a congressman from Kansas, Mike Pompeo, is the choice for CIA director. Let's begin with NPR's Scott Horsley, who's covering this story. Hi, Scott. SCOTT HORSLEY, BYLINE: Good morning, Steve. INSKEEP: When you take all these appointments together, what does it tell you about Trump? HORSLEY: Well, when you think about Michael Flynn and Jeff Sessions, they are both Trump loyalists. They have been active surrogates for Donald Trump during the course of the presidential campaign. And in some ways, they mirror some of the positions that the president-elect himself took during the campaign. Michael Flynn, like Trump, has beenTrump Offers Key Posts To Sen. Sessions, Rep. Pompeo, Retired Lt. Gen. Flynnhttp://wrvo.org/post/trump-offers-key-posts-sen-sessions-rep-pompeo-retired-lt-gen-flynn
96218 as http://wrvo.orgFri, 18 Nov 2016 15:45:00 +0000Trump Offers Key Posts To Sen. Sessions, Rep. Pompeo, Retired Lt. Gen. FlynnSteve InskeepCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit INSKEEP, HOST: And I'm Steve Inskeep with the sound of two campaign rallies - one for Donald Trump, one for Hillary Clinton. We attended them on consecutive days in the vitally important state of Florida. People waited hours to get in, as we hear elsewhere this morning. And then the rallies started almost the same. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED MAN #1: I pledge allegiance to the flag... (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America... INSKEEP: We're hearing both rallies here at once. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: ...And to the Republic for which it stands... (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED MAN #1: ...One nation under God... (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: ...One nation under God... (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED MAN #1: ...Indivisible with liberty and justice for all. (SOUNDBITE OFClinton, Trump Rallies Draw Crowds In Floridahttp://wrvo.org/post/clinton-trump-rallies-draw-crowds-florida
95284 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 27 Oct 2016 11:25:00 +0000Clinton, Trump Rallies Draw Crowds In FloridaCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit NPR.Colombian Voters Reject Peace Deal; What's Next?http://wrvo.org/post/colombian-voters-reject-peace-deal-whats-next
94339 as http://wrvo.orgMon, 03 Oct 2016 09:14:00 +0000Colombian Voters Reject Peace Deal; What's Next?Steve InskeepCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.Ga. Voters Sift Through Points Made During Monday's Presidential Debatehttp://wrvo.org/post/ga-voters-sift-through-points-made-during-mondays-presidential-debate
94112 as http://wrvo.orgTue, 27 Sep 2016 12:17:00 +0000Ga. Voters Sift Through Points Made During Monday's Presidential DebateSteve InskeepCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.A Refugee's Tale: He Escaped Iran, Now He's Stuck On A Pacific Islandhttp://wrvo.org/post/refugees-tale-he-escaped-iran-now-hes-stuck-pacific-island
93587 as http://wrvo.orgTue, 13 Sep 2016 10:56:00 +0000A Refugee's Tale: He Escaped Iran, Now He's Stuck On A Pacific IslandSteve InskeepRetired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn has been an outspoken supporter of Donald Trump, offering some credibility to the foreign policy newcomer.But on a key priority of the GOP presidential nominee — banning travel to the United States from areas affected by terrorism — Flynn acknowledged some of Trump's ideas are "not workable."In a Morning Edition interview, NPR's Steve Inskeep asked Flynn, "In the end do we have here a laudable effort to protect the United States from all harm that is just not workable at all?""Well, I think that's a great question to ask, and I would love to hear that question, Steve, asked in one of the upcoming debates," Flynn responded.He said he believed that "our responsibility is for safety and protection of American citizens abroad and at home," but that will require having "to think differently and we have to use some imagination, and we have to still protect our American values and what we represent to the rest of the world."Flynn appeared to agree that aTrump Adviser Says One Of The GOP Nominee's Signature Plans Is 'Not Workable' http://wrvo.org/post/trump-adviser-says-one-gop-nominees-signature-plans-not-workable
92166 as http://wrvo.orgTue, 09 Aug 2016 09:00:00 +0000Trump Adviser Says One Of The GOP Nominee's Signature Plans Is 'Not Workable' Steve Inskeephttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VlX_5WKwcA Speaker of the House Paul Ryan will play a prominent role at this week's Republican convention. But he will not be shaping the convention's messages — and a talk with Ryan suggests how different the convention might be if he did.We sat with the speaker Thursday, beneath the vaulted ceiling of a corner conference room. It's part of his office suite at the Capitol, which he took over less than a year ago. In a 35-minute conversation, Ryan sketched out his vision of a Republican Party that favors free trade, embraces sophisticated attacks on poverty and aggressively reaches out to racial minorities. It is, in other words, a vision wildly at odds with the vision expressed by his party's presidential candidate, Donald Trump.Ryan says he chose to endorse Trump in the interest of party unity. He did this while still criticizing many of Trump's statements. Ryan even said Trump's attack on a Mexican-American judge was "the textbook definition of aOn Eve Of Convention, Paul Ryan Offers Glimpse Of The GOP's Road Not Takenhttp://wrvo.org/post/eve-convention-paul-ryan-offers-glimpse-gops-road-not-taken
91124 as http://wrvo.orgSun, 17 Jul 2016 11:30:00 +0000On Eve Of Convention, Paul Ryan Offers Glimpse Of The GOP's Road Not TakenSteve Inskeephttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VlX_5WKwcA Surely one of the hardest jobs at the Republican convention belongs to House Speaker Paul Ryan, who will preside over it.It's hard even though Ryan has said his responsibilities are largely ceremonial. His job is harder than that of Donald Trump fans, for whom the convention can be a celebration. It's trickier than that of Trump's remaining opponents, some of whom are not attending at all. Ryan is a Trump critic who has vowed to support him for the good of the Republican Party.On the surface, the two share little common ground. Ryan is 46; Trump is more than a generation older. Ryan is a policy wonk; Trump has shown no interest in detailed policies. Ryan backs trade agreements that Trump calls terrible. Ryan wants to fight poverty and take the conservative message into minority communities; Trump appeals to white voters with statements that Ryan himself has called racist."I'm the highest-ranking Republican in the country," the SpeakerPaul Ryan's Dilemma: The Republican Party And Its Presidential Candidatehttp://wrvo.org/post/paul-ryans-dilemma-republican-party-and-its-presidential-candidate
91100 as http://wrvo.orgSat, 16 Jul 2016 12:40:00 +0000Paul Ryan's Dilemma: The Republican Party And Its Presidential CandidateSteve Inskeephttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnBmOPZI_Wc President Obama says he agrees with Donald Trump on one thing: There are "parallels" between the U.S. election and the United Kingdom's dramatic vote to leave the European Union.Obama describes the parallels differently, however. Trump described Britons "taking their country back." Obama says the Brexit vote and Trump's campaign both are marked by "xenophobia" and a fear of "funny-looking people."Obama spoke during a wide-ranging interview with NPR in which he critiqued Trump several times.In other parts of the conversation, he said Trump "embodies global elites" and is not a "legitimate spokesperson for a populist surge from working-class people, on either side of the Atlantic."His additional remarks, as seen in this video, were even more scathing."I think that some of the concerns around immigration, some of the concerns around a loss of control or a loss of national identity, those are similar," Obama said. "I think there is a xenophobiaObama: Trump, Brexit Vote Both Tap Into Fear Of 'Funny-Looking People'http://wrvo.org/post/obama-trump-brexit-vote-both-tap-fear-funny-looking-people
90374 as http://wrvo.orgWed, 29 Jun 2016 13:14:01 +0000Obama: Trump, Brexit Vote Both Tap Into Fear Of 'Funny-Looking People'Steve InskeepCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.Gannett Makes A Bid For Tribune Publishinghttp://wrvo.org/post/gannett-makes-bid-tribune-publishing
87710 as http://wrvo.orgMon, 25 Apr 2016 14:20:00 +0000Gannett Makes A Bid For Tribune PublishingSteve Inskeep"Who still supports Andrew Jackson?"An NPR colleague posed that question Thursday morning after news broke that Jackson, or at least his image, will share the $20 bill with Harriet Tubman. Tubman, in fact, would be the one on the front of the bill; Jackson would ride in back. News items described this Treasury Department decision in a way that made Jackson seem impossible to support: A slave-owning president was being shoved aside in favor of a heroic escaped slave.The poetic nature of the change is even greater than the news accounts would suggest. Jackson not only owned slaves; he was known to personally hunt down those who escaped. Now he is to be (eventually) replaced on the front of the bill with a woman who helped slaves to make their escapes.So who, if anyone, still supported him? This was the question posed by my colleague Joanna Pawlowska over breakfast in Knoxville, Tenn., where we'd been working on a Morning Edition broadcast.We were in the perfect place to ask. News ofWho Still Supports Andrew Jackson?http://wrvo.org/post/who-still-supports-andrew-jackson
87586 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 21 Apr 2016 20:47:00 +0000Who Still Supports Andrew Jackson?Steve InskeepTennessee Gov. Bill Haslam says he is deciding whether to sign legislation that would allow therapists to refuse service based on religious objections.In an interview with NPR's Morning Edition, he said he is "talking to a lot of folks to get some input" on the bill and that he had boiled his thinking down to this central question: whether therapists could truly leave their values out of their work.On one hand, he points out that the American Counseling Association "says you should always counsel from a valueless position. In other words, you don't put your own values into the conversation; you're there to help."But, he added, "I personally wonder ... regardless of whether you're a religious person or not, everybody comes into every conversation with a particular worldview and things that you believe are right or wrong. The question is can you counsel from a totally non-value-based position?"The bill was approved by Tennessee lawmakers in April and would stipulate that licensedFor Tennessee Governor Weighing Religious Objection Bill, It's All About Values http://wrvo.org/post/tenn-gov-weighing-therapist-religious-objection-bill-its-all-about-values
87555 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 21 Apr 2016 10:03:00 +0000For Tennessee Governor Weighing Religious Objection Bill, It's All About Values Steve InskeepJust how far could Republicans go to deny Donald Trump the party's nomination?A delegate to this summer's convention in Cleveland asserts that the GOP gathering could do anything it wants.Curly Haugland, a GOP national committeeman from North Dakota, told Morning Edition on Thursday of his interpretation of party rules. Not for the first time, Haugland declared that party rules do not bind any delegate to vote for any particular candidate. He argues that even delegates who are "pledged" to Trump or other contenders due to state primary results are, in reality, free to do as they like.Custom, Haugland said, may dictate that delegates should support the winners of their state primaries. But the reality of the rules is that primary votes are "absolutely irrelevant" come convention time."No matter what the popular belief might be," he said, "there is no connection between primaries and the actual convention."In our interview and in other conversations, Haugland has cited the GOP'sGOP Delegate: Trump Primary Wins 'Absolutely Irrelevant' At Conventionhttp://wrvo.org/post/gop-delegate-trump-primary-wins-absolutely-irrelevant-convention
87245 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 14 Apr 2016 14:26:00 +0000GOP Delegate: Trump Primary Wins 'Absolutely Irrelevant' At ConventionSteve InskeepCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit INSKEEP, HOST: Last summer, authorities in Turkey deported a man. His name was Ibrahim el Bakraoui. He was sent away to the Netherlands. Turkish authorities say they warned he was a suspected extremist fighter. DAVID REENE, HOST: For whatever reason, he was released. He ended up in Belgium, and el Bakraoui has now been identified as one of this week's suicide bombers in Brussels. These emerging details underlie the complexity of stopping attacks on Europe. INSKEEP: The task requires collaboration among the agencies of many nations, which is not so easy. Shortly before the latest news broke, we talked through the challenge with Belgium's ambassador to the United States. He is Johan Verbeke. Is it fair to focus, as people have, on Brussels as a hotbed of extremism? JOHAN VERBEKE: Well, I think the problem of terrorism is not just linked to one country or one region of the world. We've seen terrorism emerging not just in Europe but also in the MiddleBelgian Ambassador: 'This Is Not Going To Intimidate Us In Any Way'http://wrvo.org/post/belgian-ambassador-not-going-intimidate-us-any-way
86229 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 24 Mar 2016 09:38:00 +0000Belgian Ambassador: 'This Is Not Going To Intimidate Us In Any Way'Steve InskeepCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit INSKEEP, HOST: You, too, can step into a nightmare world. Fans of "The Walking Dead" have been doing it. TV show sets and tractor-trailers are traveling around, currently in Salt Lake City. For 60 bucks, you can plunge into a world where you're fending off zombies, or you can be made up as a blood-covered walker yourself. It's the creation of the TV show's production company as well as a fan organization called Walker Stalker Con. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR. Hunt Or Be Hunted: The Walking Dead Experiencehttp://wrvo.org/post/hunt-or-be-hunted-walking-dead-experience
86235 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 24 Mar 2016 09:38:00 +0000Hunt Or Be Hunted: The Walking Dead ExperienceSteve InskeepCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: Good morning. I'm Steve Inskeep. A real politician used the slogan of a fictional president. Julia Louis-Dreyfus' character in "Veep" runs on the slogan, continuity with change. The writer tells The Guardian it's a hollow and oxymoronic phrase, which Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is now using.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)PRIME MINISTER MALCOLM TURNBULL: You have continuity, and you have change. And there has been a lot of change.INSKEEP: To be fair, it's not a total rip-off. Turnbull's slogan isn't continuity with change, but continuity and change. That's different. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.Australian Prime Minister Slightly Changes Borrowed Slogan Using Changehttp://wrvo.org/post/australian-prime-minister-slightly-changes-borrowed-slogan-using-change
86186 as http://wrvo.orgWed, 23 Mar 2016 09:39:00 +0000Australian Prime Minister Slightly Changes Borrowed Slogan Using ChangeSteve InskeepPresidential candidate Donald Trump, after some delay, has named a few of his foreign policy advisers. One says he hopes that if Trump is elected, cooler heads will persuade him not to carry through on some of his promises.Walid Phares is a writer, Fox News commentator and onetime national security adviser to 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Although scores of GOP foreign policy specialists wrote an open letter denouncing various Trump views as "unmoored in principle," "a recipe for economic disaster," "inexusable," or reflecting "the sentiment of a racketeer," Phares decided he could help the candidate."It is hard to sign on," he told Morning Edition, "because it's a very politically charged ambiance ... but I accepted the task because I think there needs to be a major change in our policy" toward the Middle East. Phares said Trump asked him "to provide education."The conversation revealed that Phares opposes some of Trump's most attention-getting proposals andLISTEN: Trump Foreign Policy Adviser Hopes To Talk Him Out Of Torturehttp://wrvo.org/post/trump-taps-former-romney-campaign-foreign-policy-adviser-team
86182 as http://wrvo.orgWed, 23 Mar 2016 09:13:00 +0000LISTEN: Trump Foreign Policy Adviser Hopes To Talk Him Out Of TortureSteve InskeepCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: Good morning, I'm Steve Inskeep. President Obama traveled to Cuba on Air Force One. You can travel to Cuba on a cruise ship. Carnival says it's getting approval to send ships to the island. Although, there is a catch. These are designated as cultural exchange trips, which apparently means you cannot spend your time at some onboard casino. Your job is to spend at least eight hours per day on some cultural activity.DAVID GREENE, HOST: So does drinking mojitos count?INSKEEP: Well, it did for Hemingway. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.Cruise To Cuba For Cultural Exchangehttp://wrvo.org/post/cruise-cuba-cultural-exchange
86129 as http://wrvo.orgTue, 22 Mar 2016 12:21:00 +0000Cruise To Cuba For Cultural Exchange